Seeing the Past
by Maxima Fortunata
Summary: Sakura can see dead people. She escapes to a new town in hopes of having a somewhat normal life but what happens when a newly dead soul with a mission figures her little secret. Blackmail. Can Sakura help the soul? What will happen when time runs out? AU


**A/N: Alright this is something that has been floating around in my head for a _really_ long time. I already have the second chapter but I'm thinking unless I get at least 5 reviews I won't post it. Truthfully I'm new to the whole fanfic thing so if you have some pointers tell me. If you see mistakes in this story tell me. I want criticism, now I don't mean flames but you get the picture. I mean I don't even know if you like it so give your opinion, I'm all about free speech. So please, please, _please _click the review button. And hey maybe flying bunnies will appear if you do. That's always a plus right?**

**Thanks,**

**Maxima Fortunata**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.  
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**Seeing the Past**

**Chapter One: Cowboy Pajamas**

Sakura stared up at the dark gates of the run down structure. She tightened the scarf around her neck and looking both ways to make sure no one was watching. She crossed the street. Facing the terraced wall Sakura hesitated giving the street behind her another once over to ensure she was alone. Technically this was breaking and entering. She grabbed hold of the wood with gloved hands and heaved herself over the ledge. She landed with a grunt in the barren garden on the other side.

A dog barked.

Sakura froze listening, waiting until the only sounds were the soft chirp of the crickets and her barely audible breathes. She approached a window and jimmied it open with practiced ease. The floorboards groaned beneath her feet. She winced praying there were no unexpected guests living in the condemned mansion. It would only make her job harder and decrease the pay.

A heavy feeling sunk into her chest.

The room was elongated French doors decorated the left side and dusty, cracked sky-lights lined the ceiling on the right. At some point it must have been a sun room. Yet nothing remained of the beauty and warmth shown in the pictures Sakura received when she accepted this assignment. There were blood stains on the walls and wooded floors and tried her best to ignore the graffiti and Satanistic symbols etched into them.

The pressure increased.

Sakura removed the glove of her right hand and tucked it into her pants pocket. She took a deep breath and held it letting her hand rest on the wall beside the open window. Instantaneously the world spun around her and her body dropped to the floor.

Her heart froze mid-beat as consciousness slipped away from her. Everything was muffled like she was holding her breath underwater. Sakura waited until the blurred figures around her focused before taking a deep breath. She sat up where she'd fallen on the floor, they were polished she realized standing. The molded ceiling was now painted a proud ivory and the once covered furniture sat vacant and pristine. Sakura could hear birds' twittering outside yet the house was quiet, deserted.

"Hello?" she called. Light filtered in from the open windows showing trundles of dust flouting through the air. Sakura jumped as something moved out of the corner of her eye. She turned to her left where a large entry way with two sets of French doors led to the foyer. She moved towards it. "I know you're here. I-I've seen you in the window." She pointed upwards to the second story. Sakura opened the doors and let them swing outward. A tiny figure sat crouched near the foot of the stairs, sniffling.

"You don't have to be scared of me." She whispered standing in the entry way. The sniffling stopped. Sakura wheezed, it was getting harder to breathe.

The creature turned slightly.

"Are you afraid of me?" It asked in a gravelly voice. Sakura hesitated.

_Never show fear. Tell him no._ Whispered the tiny voice in the back of her head, she took a deep breath.

"No." The creature stilled.

Sakura licked her lips as the image of a lion tearing into the hide of an antelope flashed in her mind. 'And the predator attacked taking down his prey.' She needed to stop watching Discovery.

"Are you sure?" It moved without the grace of the lion. Sakura winced as she heard its bones crack from rigor mortis. The creature grinned, exposing black rotten teeth. But it was the eyes that caught Sakura's attention. They were covered over with cataracts, encrusted with puss, and void of life.

"Yes." She replied her voice shook.

The creature snarled. Sakura didn't have time to scream as it pounced on her. She hit the wooden floor causing the doors to shake unsteadily.

"You're lying." It hissed in sing song placing its hand on either side of her head. Sakura froze as saliva dripped from its mouth; this creature was wearing cowboy pajamas. It was a boy.

She closed her eyes and swallowed hard to keep the tears away. "It's time for you to leave." The boy cocked his head to the side. His neck cracked with the movement.

'It's broken.' Sakura realized with horror. His bones moved unnaturally under the skin, if she wasn't mistaken, a slight with tip of the spine punctured the surface.

"It is?"

She forced herself to look the boy in his eyes away from the repulsive sight.

"Yes. Your mother is waiting for you."

"What about the bad man?" he quavered. He sounded more human. Sakura tried to keep the knowledge of the brutal beatings which lead to his death out of her mind.

"The bad man is already gone. He can't hurt you anymore." She murmured closing her eyes unable to watch any longer.

Silence set in and the pressure lifted. "….Thank you….." he said in a breathy sigh.

Sakura waited a second listening. When she opened her eyes he was gone. The urge to cry was growing yet she picked herself up and wobbled back to where she awoke. Sakura placed her hand on the wall and fell into a dizzying state of unconsciousness.

She opened her eyes minutes later and sat up, back in the ruins of the mansion. She sniffled.

_Well done_, her guide whispered.

Sakura covered her mouth, a muffled wail bursting from her lips. The stream of tears fell as the last of the boy's emotions filtered through her. He hadn't frightened her but his circumstances had. Sometimes it was hard not to let emotions of sadness and fear get the better of you.

_This isn't the time to be crying._

"I know." She snapped scrubbing away the tears. "That was the only one left right?" She stood dusting off her pants.

_Of course_, his tone was tart.

Sakura sneered in front of her. To any outside person she was talking to air. At times she felt as if she were but there was no mistaking the small wispy orb of blue and green light that floated in front of her. He went by the name Shikamaru. Supposedly in some other life he'd been a famous tactician and one of the leading members of her order. Now he was her guide, pinned with an array of misdemeanors involving bouts of laziness.

"Good." Sakura sniffed, replacing the glove over her hand covering three angry scratches. She frowned. That had taken three hours? It hadn't seemed like three hours.

She slipped out the still open window and over the wall with ease. When her feet touched the other side the whoop-op of a police siren was the last thing she'd expected to greet her. Interchanging red and blue lights caused the shadows of the street to dance.

"Great." She muttered sardonically as a man slammed his car door shut.

"Put your hands against the wall." He ordered.

She obeyed.

What a way to end the night.

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**Once again 5 reviews or no chapter two. I know it's harsh but hey an author only gets better through the criticism of her peers.**


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